The northernmost area of Burgundy, universally known as Chablisienne, is so famous that often the term Chalis seems to live of own life, independent from the macro-region it belongs from, because of its unique and peculiar pedoclimatic characteristics. In fact, the cold temperatures, added to the unique composition of the soil, made of marl and limestone of the Upper Jurassic (between 160 and 145 million years ago) mixed with shell fossils “Exogira Virgola” (154 million years ago), makes the wines that are produced there characterized by sharp acidity and meager body. A true identity card that the Dampt family respects and enhances in its wine production.
In fact, in Milly, a small village in Chablisienne under the Premier Cru Cote de Lechet, around 1950, Daniel Dampt, with the help of his father-in-law Jean Defaix, founded the homonymous Domaine Daniel Dampt, collecting the experiences accumulated by his family in the previous 150 years dedicated to viticulture. Although the Domaine is currently led by the sons of Daniel, Vincent and Sebastien, the production philosophy has remained the same: doing everything to enhance the specificity of their 30 hectares of land (16 of Village and 14 of 1er Cru) enclosed in an annual production of about 150,000 bottles. In the vineyard it is followed a viticulture inspired by common sense, with very low yields, to allow the bunches to collect up to the last ounce of nutrients of the plant, while in the new cellar, built in the early 2000s, all the phases of vinification are made in steel, to preserve the freshness of the fruit. Even in the production of Chablis Village, the winery’s business card, after the manual harvest, fermentation and aging (a few months) take place in steel.
The 2017 vintage, with a hot summer that brought the harvest forward by 3 weeks, is characterized by a straw yellow color, with an olfactory range that opens on notes of crispy nectarine, yellow plum, medlar and chlorophyll, followed by kumquat, hawthorn, cedar peel and flint. The palate, in which the freshness and acidity citrine are obviously the master, is enriched by an unexpected softness and, more in the background, the sapid/ mineral component; all enriched by the return of fresh fruit and citrus fruits that accompany the sip until a good length closure.
Rating: 88/100
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